Process Book

Revision class
IKEA case study & general
questions
Chapter
1,2,4,5,6,10,11,12,13,&15

Please read p 13 & 14 IKEA

case study, and answer the
following questions.

Q1 : Think about this organization (IKEA) as an open system, and Identify the
main activities it performs. List the main inputs and the main outputs of
the operations.
Q2: Kats & Khan sets 5 sub-systems at work. Identify them according to
IKEA case.

Q 3: What is the dominant transformed resources-materials, information or

customers? List all the information resources you find it in IKEA case.
Q 4: Consider IKEA outputs to assess the extent to which the outputs are
goods or services? Explain.
Q5: List macro & micro-operations in IKEA.
Q6: Write down the major advantages and major disadvantages of buffering
an operation function from its environment?
Q7: For IKEA success, processes should be systems focused. Discuss this
statement using materials and examples from the B200 Processes
module.

8- Define the 10 steps of Order Management Cycle (OMC) briefly describing each
step
How can we apply it to IKEA case study?
9. All parts of the organization are operations Explain this statement through
examples.
10. As employee in a Successful organization, what the advice you might
suggests to the CEO to shift into capabilities based competitors, and identify
the 4 basic principles of capabilities based competitors to clarify the idea.
11. Competitive scope can have a powerful effect on competitive advantage. What
are the major dimensions of scope that affect the value chain?
12. Identify the value activities which play important role distinct activities that
depend on the particular industry and firm strategy?
13- Discuss why an organisation might choose to recall its products and how this
recall take place. Give examples from the B200 Processes module.
14- Effective logistics management can provide a major source of competitive
advantage. Explain.

Q1 : Think about this organization (IKEA) as an open system, and

Identify the main activities it performs. List the main inputs and
the main outputs of the operations.
IKEAS as an open system have direct interact with the environment.
Open system have 3 major characteristics:
Receive input from environment
Convert input to output
Discharge their outputs into their environment.

Input
Materials (wood,..)
Ideas (designing)
Staff
Finance (budget)
Location

Environment
Conversion
Manufacturing
Research
Marketing
Planning
Production

Output
Furniture
Services (information
, tickets
help desk, child care
)Catalogue

Q2: Kats & Khan sets 5 sub-systems at work. Identify them

according to IKEA case.
Production sub-system: concern with furniture production and services
(manufacture, customer service, catalogue, )
Supportive sub-system: concern with relationship between the organization and
external environment. ( information point, information tickets, self service are,
food stuff, childrens play area).
Maintenance sub-system: concern with stability of the organization (rules and
reward the staff).
Adaptive sub-system: concern with what the organization might become. How
IKEA is working and deliver services and product in unique way.
Managerial sub-system: controlling, coordinating, planning, and taking decision.
IKEA management develop

Q 3: What is the dominant transformed resources-materials,

information or customers? List all the information resources
you find it in IKEA case.

The transformation process in operations is closely connected with the nature of its
transformed input resources. Transformation mean using resources to change
the state or condition.
Material Process: IKEA using raw materials to develop their products (furniture)

Information Process: IKEA using customers ideas and suggestions to design new
products.
Customers Process: self-services

Q 4: Consider IKEA outputs to assess the extent to which

the outputs are goods or services? Explain.

Most operations produce both goods and services. IKEA produces

goods and services, produce furniture and provide customer
services.
IKEA outputs are:
Tangibility, because we are looking to the furniture, we have the ability
to compare and choose. In the other hand IKEA provide intangible
services by advising the customer to choose the product they want
by comparing.
Storability, Furniture could be stored ,
Transportability, IKEA help customers to transport the furniture's,
loading area.
Simultaneity, catalogue (goods) and services.
Customer contact, relationship between customer & operation.
Quality, how customer will juge services and the products.

Q5: List macro & micro-operations in IKEA?

&Marketing
Sales

Finance

Production

HRM

Furniture design & production

Customer Service
Staff recruitment
Budgeting
Maintenance & Support
Others..

Q6: Write down the major advantages and major disadvantages of

buffering an operation function from its environment?

Answer:
Buffering is the best way to reduce environmental disruption. Buffering
will be in 2 ways:
Physical buffering by designing an inventory or stock resources at the
input side of transformation process or at the output. IKEA can store
the raw materials, the furniture's, some semi-products.
Organizational buffering by allocating the responsibilities of the various
function in IKEA to be protected form external environment
competitors. Buffering the ideas and suggestions .
The disadvantages as listed in p 29 & 30.

7- For IKEA success, processes should be systems

focused. Discuss this statement using materials and
examples from the B200 Processes module.

Answer
Ch 1, 2, 11, 14, .
Define process, system, competitive advantage,
transformation process, OMC, logistic management,
.and any related topic.

8- Define the 10 steps of Order Management Cycle

(OMC) briefly describing each step
How can we apply it to IKEA case study?

Answer
13 p. 188 190
Identify OMC, explain each order with
example.

9. All parts of the organization are operations

Explain this statement through examples.
Answer guide:
- Identify operation in the organization, the major and
support function
- Explain how the organization departments &
management are working effectively to reach the goal.
- Examples by using table 2.1 p 16
- See your book Ch. 2 P. 15 to 17

10. As employee in a Successful organization, what the advice you

might suggests to the CEO to shift into capabilities based
competitors, and identify the 4 basic principles of
capabilities based competitors to clarify the idea.
Answer
- To be a competitor we need to focus on some effective points ( 5
dimensions) speed, consistency, acuity, agility & innovativeness.
- I identify the 4 steps that transferee the company into capabilitiesbased competitor.
- More clarification by mention the 4 principles.
- Use Honda case study as example.
- See your book Ch. 4 p. 42, 43, 44, 46, & 47.

11. Competitive

scope can have a powerful effect on

competitive advantage. What are the major
dimensions of scope that affect the value chain?

Answer:
- Explain the 4 scopes with examples.
- See your book Ch. 5 p. 62 - 64

12. Identify

the value activities which play important

role distinct activities that depend on the
particular industry and firm strategy?
Answer guide:
-

Identify value chain

Identify value chain activities
Use the diagram p 52
Identify the activities that play important role in
competitive advantages
- Support each part of answer with example from your
organization .
- See your book Ch. 5 P. 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, & 56

13- Discuss why an organisation might choose to recall

its products and how this recall take place. Give
examples from the B200 Processes module.

Answer
Ch 12
Identify reverse logistic
Classes of recall
Steps of recalling
Mention examples
Fig 12.1 p 171

14- Effective logistics management can provide a major

source of competitive advantage. Explain.

Answer
Ch 11 p.150 153
Identify logistics, productivity advantage, value
advantage, supply chain management.
Fig 11.3

explain

end